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W, P. JOHNSON. Automatic Station Indicator and Advertiser.

IN V EpTO RI WITNESSES! fiflf @y; 1 A M N.FETERS, PHOTO LTHOGRAPHER, wnsjime'l'tmv D C.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE,

" -11AM F. JOHNSON, OF PROVIDENCE, RHODE TO EDWIN S. GAILLARD, OF SAME PLACE.

THIRD OF HIS RIGHT ISLAND, ASSIGNOR OF ONE- AUTOMATIC STATION-INDICATOR AND ADVERTISER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 231,961, dated September '7', 1880,

Application filed December 31, 1879.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, WILLIAM F. JOHNSON, of the city and county of Providence, and State of Rhode Island, have invented a new and 5 useful Improvement in Automatic Station-In-' dierto ind Advertiser; and I hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accnnpanying drawings, forming part of IO this specification.

The object of this invention is to indicate I the streets or stations in a railroad'car, and also exhibit advertisements in regular succession, so as to call attention to the same.

I 5 The invention consists in the peculiar arrangement, with a set of rollers, of a band or sheet on which the names of streets or stations are marked, and also advertisements, of an eccentric connected with one of the revolv- 2o ing axles of a car, and intervening mechanism by means of which the sheet is operated, so as to bring the names of streets or stations, and also the advertisements, successively and automatically into view, as will be more fully set 2 5 forth hereinafter.

Figure 1 is a perspective view of part of a car, showing the interior of the same, the station-indicator and advertiser being shown at one end of the car, and the eccentric by means of which it is operated as secured to the axle of the car-wheels. Fig. 2 is an enlarged view of the rollers and the driving mechanism, showing the means employed for driving the rollers, so as to exhibit the proper names and ad 3 5 vcrtisements in rotation at the proper time, and also the means by which the direction is reversed at the end of the route. Fig. 3 is a sectional view of the rollers, showing the belt or chain by which they are operated, as also the driving-roller and the tightening-rolls.

In the drawings, (1. represents the axle of one set of car-wheels, the wheels being secured to the axle. Therefore the wheels and the axle turn together. I) is an eccentric disk secured 5 to the axle and turning with the same. 0 is the eccentric strap, and d the connecting-rod, one end of which is provided with a pawl, which engages with the ratchet-wheels 6.

Each turn of the wheels and axle produces one reciprocation of the connecting-rod, and

I as the pawl engages with the ratchet-wheel 0 only when moving in one direction, owing to the usual form of the teeth on such ratchetwheels, the reciprocating motion of the connecting-rod turns the ratchet-wheel c gradually tooth by tooth. The ratchet-wheel e is secured to the lower end of the vertical shaft f, on which the tubular sleeve g, carrying the bevel-gears h h, is free to slide vertically, while it always turns with the shaftf, it being con- 6o nected with the said shaft either by a feather or by a pin working in a slot, as is shown in Fig. 2.

Either of the bevel-gears It It may be made to gear into the beveled gear 1', secured to the 6 5 end of the driving-shaft k, and therefore said shaft may be turned in either direction, and the direction reversed by disengaging one of the beveled gears and engaging the other.

The sleeve 9, to which the beveled gears are secured, is supported by the lever 1). The sleeve and beveled gears maybe easily raised or lowered, and thereby the direction of the motion changed, and the same may be secured in the desired position by the thumb-screw g 7 or any other suitable device.

The driving-shaft 7c is provided with the drivingpulleys Z Z, over which the cord, belt, or chain 0 passes. It is held in contact with the driving-pulley by the binder-rollers m m, as is shown in Fig. 3. The belt or chain (when achaiu is used the pulleys l I will be chain-pulleys) passes over the rollers a n and firmly holds the canvas belt or sheet to the rollers; and as the belt ois driven withafixed positive motion at each revolution of the wheels, the belt or canvas will also move at a fixed uniform speed, no matter whether the rollers n n are full or empty, as the face of the canvas always moves with the same velocity as the belt 0.

The connecting-rod d is supported in the bearing 4', and is held in contact with the ratchet-gear e by the spring 8.

The eccentric may be covered by a box, so 5 as to prevent dust from entering and cutting the wearingsurfaces.

The mechanism of this device is so simple and efficient that it must wear a long time without repairs. The change of direction on the end of the route can be made in an instant; and as the face of the canvas or apron is moving at a fixed ratio with each revolution of the car-wheels, the streets or stations will be indicated with great accuracy.

As an advertising medium this arrangement is of the highest importance, and the importance of a station or street indicator is also enhanced by the advertisements, each drawin g attention to the other, and thus keeping up such an interest in them both that the eyes of the passengers will involnntarily'rest on them, and thus convey the desired information. By means of the simplicity of its construction this indicator and advertiser can be made at a low price, and the revenue from the advertisements will induce companies to use them in their cars.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent- 1. In a combined automatic street or station indicator and advertiser, belt or apron rollers and connecting cords, chains, or belts therefor, in combination with an optionally-reversible drivingshaft provided with a pinion, a shaft driven from the car-axle, a shifting sleeve thereon carrying two pinions adapted to alternately mesh with the pinion on the rollerdriving shaft, and a lever provided with a set nut or screw operating to shift the pinioncarrying sleeve, so as to cause one or the other of its pinions to mesh With the pinion on the roller-driving shaft, substantially as specified.

2. In a street or station indicator and advertiser, the combination, with the canvas or apron and its supportingarolls n n, of the driving-shaft 7c, the pulleys l thereon, the cords, belts, or chains 0,connecting the apronsupporting rolls, and confining the apron thereupon, and operated by the driving-shaft pulleys, and the binder-rolls m, arranged between the driving-shaft and the apron-rolls, and operating in connection with the cords 0, and mechanism to set the same in motion, substantially as described.

WILLIAM F. JOHNSON.

Witnesses:

Josnrn A. MILLER, JosEPH'A. MILLER, Jr. 

